The content on the other hand will be familiar to those who have read similar regional guides because reported phenomena tend to be stable across places. The chapters are a mixture of those focusing on specific locations, and on types of event. We begin with activity in Studland, Swanage and Langton Matravers (the last not a cad in a Victorian melodrama) before moving on to Corfe Castle and Wareham. The third chapter concentrates on a single building, the Royal Oak in Swanage, which is notable for the richness of events reported there. The following chapters deal with Near-Death Experiences, time-related phenomena (precognition, synchronicity, time-slips), and the final chapter contains general reflections.
There are some historical accounts, and some supplied second-hand, but the majority were told to Leadbetter by the experient. A number of these personal stories are rather thin, either with little detail or a probable normal explanation, but others are more detailed, making them a valuable contribution to the database of cases. The first two chapters contain the usual mix of hauntings and poltergeists, and will be of most relevance to tourists wanting to add some spooky locations to their itinerary. Of course interviewees often wish to remain anonymous, or ask for their place of residence to be omitted except perhaps in general terms, and the significant proportion of these anonymised narratives reduces the book’s value as a guidebook. The Royal Oak on the other hand gets a whopping 23 pages, and Leadbetter has done a thorough job in recording accounts of staff and customers. By contrast the NDE chapter is short, and while there is always a local connection, it has a miscellaneous feel, covering also out-of-body and vague medically-related experiences. The chapter on time and synchronicity includes a couple of ‘small world’ coincidences which, while they are surprising to the experient, are not particularly unusual, and it is doubtful that they have any significance.
The concluding chapter draws out commonalities among the various topics Leadbetter has recorded, and he uses the work G N M Tyrrell did for the SPR in analyzing and categorising types of apparitions to examine the ones in his own collection. He looks at scientific correlates, asks whether animals possess any paranormal abilities, and concludes with speculations on what paranormal phenomena might mean for the future of the human race. There are no surprises here, but primary accounts are always worth collecting as they may assist some future Tyrrell to discern patterns that will enable a better understanding of what exactly is going on. On an everyday level, Paranormal Purbeck is an entertaining read which will be enjoyed by locals and visitors alike. Hopefully Roving Press will produce further books which do a similar job for other parts of Dorset, and perhaps further afield.